2008 Woodie Awards
College Life
Clinton in Cannavino?
Alec Troxell
Issue date: 2/19/04 Section: Features
- Page 1 of 1
Last Monday morning while on my way to the library, I noticed something was different. There were security guards posted periodically throughout the campus, and a shiny black van was parked at the basement door of the library with men in business suits standing all around it. I knew something was up.
Then, when sitting in the caf of the library, I noticed in the upstairs window in front of me many more suits with earpieces pacing and looking all around. Now I knew some big hot shot had to be here if they had secret service men.
Then a well-dressed elderly man walked in and said to me, "Is this where Hillary Clinton is speaking?" With that one statement he answered every question running through my mind, except the question, "Why is she here?"
With that, the classmates I was working with and I walked upstairs in an attempt to see if we could sit in and listen to her speak, only to find that our names weren't on the list.
It was explained to me that Hillary came to Poughkeepsie for a breakfast at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center and came to Marist as a last minute thought to speak in the James A. Cannavino Library. This is where my gripe begins.
If this was a last minute decision, why was there a list including a number of students? Marist inundates us with flyers promoting boring authors and speakers that are coming to Marist encouraging us to attend, but when someone of interest actually comes, it's all hush hush.
This presentation was so closed up that even my editor for The Circle wasn't notified, as I called her to see if anyone was covering the story. Now this is due to lack of communication, however she still had difficulty gaining entry when she rushed over. Had she not quickly come over to the library, not only would we have been denied a first-hand encounter, but we also would have been shut out from a second-hand report. No one would have known Hillary was here except by word of mouth.
We pay good money to attend this institution, and I for one don't appreciate being kept out of the loop where I miss amazing opportunities when truly important people visit our campus. Sure, this may have been a quick visit limited to a small number of people, but then why isn't Marist bringing in bigger people like Hillary Clinton? If Hillary and her people can choose for her to speak at Marist on their own, then why can't we convince other prominent people like her to speak here as well? This is a great school with many resources, and it's about time administration used them to invite some speakers we've at least heard of or care about.
Then, when sitting in the caf of the library, I noticed in the upstairs window in front of me many more suits with earpieces pacing and looking all around. Now I knew some big hot shot had to be here if they had secret service men.
Then a well-dressed elderly man walked in and said to me, "Is this where Hillary Clinton is speaking?" With that one statement he answered every question running through my mind, except the question, "Why is she here?"
With that, the classmates I was working with and I walked upstairs in an attempt to see if we could sit in and listen to her speak, only to find that our names weren't on the list.
It was explained to me that Hillary came to Poughkeepsie for a breakfast at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center and came to Marist as a last minute thought to speak in the James A. Cannavino Library. This is where my gripe begins.
If this was a last minute decision, why was there a list including a number of students? Marist inundates us with flyers promoting boring authors and speakers that are coming to Marist encouraging us to attend, but when someone of interest actually comes, it's all hush hush.
This presentation was so closed up that even my editor for The Circle wasn't notified, as I called her to see if anyone was covering the story. Now this is due to lack of communication, however she still had difficulty gaining entry when she rushed over. Had she not quickly come over to the library, not only would we have been denied a first-hand encounter, but we also would have been shut out from a second-hand report. No one would have known Hillary was here except by word of mouth.
We pay good money to attend this institution, and I for one don't appreciate being kept out of the loop where I miss amazing opportunities when truly important people visit our campus. Sure, this may have been a quick visit limited to a small number of people, but then why isn't Marist bringing in bigger people like Hillary Clinton? If Hillary and her people can choose for her to speak at Marist on their own, then why can't we convince other prominent people like her to speak here as well? This is a great school with many resources, and it's about time administration used them to invite some speakers we've at least heard of or care about.